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Full-Text Articles in Geography
Redefining Development: Exploring Alternative Economic Practices In Appalachia, Amanda Fickey
Redefining Development: Exploring Alternative Economic Practices In Appalachia, Amanda Fickey
Theses and Dissertations--Geography
This dissertation examines alternative economic practices and regional economic development strategies in the Appalachian region. First, I deconstruct regional economic development policies and practices. I argue that policy documents produced by the Appalachian Regional Commission and the State of Kentucky have often limited economic imaginings through the perpetuation of regional stereotypes and short-term, decontextualized strategies. Then, I explore the existence of alternative economic practices as well as the contradictory role of the state within the context of Eastern Kentucky’s craft industry. Using a mixed methods approach, I investigate how the state simultaneously supports cooperative craft production by perpetuating a geographical …
The Geography Of Stuck: Exceptions To Brain Drain In West Virginia, Lindsay Heinemann
The Geography Of Stuck: Exceptions To Brain Drain In West Virginia, Lindsay Heinemann
Theses, Dissertations and Capstones
Brain drain, also known as “human capital flight,” can be defined as “the mass emigration of technically skilled people from one country to another country” (Weeks, 2008, p. 250) or one state to another state. This theory surmises that highly skilled people or those with high education levels are more likely to migrate from places with little to no economic opportunities to places with better economic and job opportunities. West Virginia has largely been a state with few high paying or prestigious job opportunities. So why do highly educated people stay in West Virginia? Using census data and personal interviews, …